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Well ... it's one of the factors to help with the decision and there are always risks of buying things from strangers via Internet. That's why a feedback system like eBay's would be very helpful.

I think I'd trust a seller X with, say, 1000 posts than one with only, say, 3 posts (no offense to those with only 1-3 posts You're new and it takes time to make yourself "visible" to the community). X is obviously addicted to the forum and I don't think he/she would risk being kicked out by scamming people here

I dont think vbulletin (software used by badminton forum) could support those type of feedback ...

and to customize the software will take a lot of times and you cant enjoy the free upgrade of the based software.

The only visible thing that I could find is to ban those who are repeat offenders or repeating posting unrelevant materials ... may be for 1 day - 3 days and up to 1 month. This is what happened in webhostingtalk.com

What about setting up a new forum for ppl with silly topics, novice questions or who don't want to do a search? Threads will be deleted automatically if no new post shows up in a month or two. Thread starters decide that if the thread will contain materials with reference qualities and post it in the right forum. Moderators can also move those stupid threads into this forum instead of deleting it. Maybe, thread starters in the regular forum will have less excuses for not doing a search first!

Originally posted by swijaya0101 most of the topic in the other forums are repeated. If you limit this, I dont think you could find new posts everyday.

"New post" should have its meaning. Post are created to share information. If some old stuff just being up again and again, I consider it's nothing creative and just a waste. In this case, I would rather don't see it. Which one u prefer? Old junks all over the place? Or, less posts, but almost everyone is very useful and informative???

We are not talking about u have to search every thread, say, u r repeating something ppl talked about 2 yrs ago. Ok, I agree such thing is extremly hard to find or even think about. It's very possible, u saw some "rare" things, and thought nobody ever experienced before, and willing to share. In case u "repeat" this kinda thread, I don't think that's your fault.

However, we are talking about some obvious repeating issues. How many times u just see a new thread say, "what's teh best tension?", "what's the best racket?", "Is more tension gives more control/power?" I am not saying we have to squeeze all related topics must be in 1 thread, but there are a lot of cases, we have similar threads been post just one next to another, or just 1 or 2 days apart. I believe if ppl can do a search, or even drag down to the bottom of the page, they can surely find their answers right away.

I know it is very hard to "draw the line". Myself sometimes also feel frustrated to look for some stuff. However, if u tried, and can't find the thing u need easily, feel free to post. Always, TRY SEARCH before just START a new one...

Originally posted by Tammy Well ... it's one of the factors to help with the decision and there are always risks of buying things from strangers via Internet. That's why a feedback system like eBay's would be very helpful.

I think I'd trust a seller X with, say, 1000 posts than one with only, say, 3 posts (no offense to those with only 1-3 posts You're new and it takes time to make yourself "visible" to the community). X is obviously addicted to the forum and I don't think he/she would risk being kicked out by scamming people here

I understand where you're coming from but the post count is not an accurate measure of how long a member has been on the forum. For that it is best to check their profile and the take note of the date they registered on the forum. The post count is more of a measure of how "active" members are. And even then, a low post count isn't necessarily a sign that a member doesn't regularly visit the forum. Some people just have less to say .

i believe the quality of the top quality posts are the same as month/years before. however, there are also much higher noise ratio. the noises are things that looks more like chit-chatting, non-sense and yelling posts, or "casual conversations" as cooler put it, asking repeated questions, or joking around (mind you, occasional jokes are ok, but not a thread of it, especially when it hijaaked the thread's original intent). many of these are better suited to a chat-room, and imho, it has little place in a discussion forum.

BRL, in a rage, i deleted two threads in the marketplace last night coz the posters were mindlessly chatting and making non-sensible comments. the comments are so stupid and juvenile even some of the participants stated that the thread has become so stupid someone should lock it. now i regretted doing that.

as LB said, it is very hard to define a line or rules between "good" and "bad". and if there are any such definition, someone will be bound to exploit loopholes in it and sooner or later, we will find the set of rules to be as thick as a dictionary. i hope to leave that to the poster's judgement and this thread as a reminder.

badrad's idea of a guideline + active moderation instead of a set of rules is a good idea. i do feel that the current set of guidelines is a bit too loose. we should work to refine that.

Pre-emptive, yes, there are measures that we have discussed and having a "trashbin" forum was one of them, we believe that is harsh a measure though but we will keep that in mind.

the other measure is to take out post counts. we agree that post count can be seen as a measure of trustfulness. that can be true in many sense, but not totally so. there are many who posts many 'casual conversation' posts while there are also many who post a few posts with lots of knowledge, thoughts and insights behind it.

either way, if we do turn off the post count, it will only affect the thread view, Tammy, you can still click on the user's profile and find out the post count from there.

i hope everybody don't feel that we are trying to curb any "lightness" in the forum. on appropriate occasions, it is actually desirable to have joke here and there. 100% seriousness make a place dull. however, we believe that we are dangerously leaning toward the light side and we are seeking to strike a balance here.

After giving this thread more thought, I retract my original vote to turn off the post counts. Punishing the majority for the wrongs of a few is not right.

However, my concern is similar to what txyu said earlier about the post count, it gives me an impression of how much badminton knowledge any particular member has.

ie: High Post Count = Large amount of knowledge

It has been my mistake to assume such an impression but as a relatively new (in terms of time) member to the forum, and even badminton itself, I had little else to go on. A large part of my concern is that other new members or those who are new to the sport might also make the same assumption. As much valued knowledge I have gained since joining here, I've probably spent as much or more time reading fiction rather than fact. As someone who is in the process of learning as much as they can about badminton, having to differentiate between fact and fiction is a frustrating chore at best. I think this is partially what Kwun is trying to avoid. From the perspective of an administrator or moderator, negative experiences only degrade the quality of the forum.

This is third badminton forum I've experienced. The first was very active but the members did nothing but squabble amongst themselves over what they believed was right. I couldn't learn anything because no one made enough sense to be correct, nor had the maturity to admit when they were wrong. They were all adults behaving like children. The second forum was also fairly active but all the active members turned out to be teenagers and kids using it as a social chatroom. Needless to say, I learned nothing there as well. This forum is simply the best. Since joining, I've learned a lot, and have even met a lot of wonderful and knowledgeable people (in person). Lets help Kwun keep this forum from turning into those others I've seen.

Kwun, you've indentified a problem, so similar to what badrad asked, it would be helpful if you took the lead on how you want it handled and perhaps some strict ground rules. A lot of debate here seems to stem from what is acceptable for one person may not be so for others. We eagerly await a resolution.

Note: Oops I ended up writing this (probably while Kwun was posting). I also got interrupted and so I didn't get to finish this nor read his post until after I submitted mine now.I'll leave it anyway because it still makes sense(?).

being a new member of this forum, i definately read a lot more threads than posting any (as you can see from my post count). i don't really know the different levels of seriousness of this forum in the past or present, but from the way i see it, i think there still should be a sufficient amount of "lightness" just to keep most people happy.

kwun's right in saying how 100% seriousness makes the forum dull. also, before i joined as a member, i read many of the threads and wondered "if i become a new member, would i have to conform to everyone's serious tone?" to be honest, this thought kinda made me feel "iffy" to join. new members probably are a bit worried whether or not other members will accept them or not. i don't know if any of you have ever experienced it with other forums, but i find that the first overall impression of a forum will sometimes determine whether someone should join or not (ie. if they think they're gunna feel comfortable posting, then they might consider joining). i think i sound like i'm rambling here...

i'm not saying that 100% "lightness" in a forum is the way to go. i just think that it'll probably bring a more comfortable atmosphere that everyone will enjoy.

I hardly come here as often as I used to, as I have also found alot of things I am reading are repetitive. (I still check out once a week to see if there's an interest thread that catches my eye).

Age difference may be a factor in some of the posts here. I find that younger people or teenagers tend to post on forums with few support for their opinions or arguments.

You can't blame some of them, because over the years I have come to learn that many of them have not developed the comprehension or language structure to write in that kind of way. I don't think it would be fair to force everyone to write an essay everytime they posted something.

Originally posted by timeless Note: Oops I ended up writing this (probably while Kwun was posting). I also got interrupted and so I didn't get to finish this nor read his post until after I submitted mine now.I'll leave it anyway because it still makes sense(?).

Hahaha...that was probably me dropping by with the demo racquets, eh?

Anyhow, the frustration is there about the uselessness of some postings as some of you could tell from some of my recent responses. In the past, I have just set up an Ignore List but I am finding that this list is growing which is an indicator to me. I even had, in the past, one poster accusing me of reporting them to the moderators and demanding to know why I had done so!

This forum has been very, very good in ensuring that the irrevelant postings/threads are removed unlike some of the infamous ones like worldbadminton. I know that there are guidelines and rules posted and it would be nice if the newer posters take sometime to read and also observe the postings over an initial period to get a feel of the type of postings "accepted". Everyone is human and allowed to make mistakes from time to time. One of the great features of this forum is the "community" feel eventhough all of us are geographically and culturally separated.

Some recent replies to postings included "Buy the MP88" without any reasoning on why the poster feel that the racquet is a better buy. Anyhow, I don't think there is a full solution to the problem(s) but rather we are dependent on our moderators/administrators and our good judgement and common sense.

Bottom line, I would rather see that we moderate ourselves as much as we can with assistance and prodding from our wonderful trio of moderators.

I think the guidlines idea is going to be much more effective at accomplishing your goal while much less invasive with how the board is used now. As for deleting threads... i dont think that is a good idea because then no one would know what was said that caused the thread to be "bad." It's more effective to lock it.

Originally posted by bigredlemon As for deleting threads... i dont think that is a good idea because then no one would know what was said that caused the thread to be "bad." It's more effective to lock it.

Personally, I am 100% trust kwun's judgement. I don't think he will just delete a threads, if just he thinks it makes no sense. The only reason I see threads (just a few since I joined) being deleted, I have say they must be way out of "acceptance level".

However, if u think at least give a chance to set "examples", maybe it's better to lock it first (if possible, give a little bit explaination, if not too much work) for several days, to set the "tones" for others, then delete it later for space saving. If this idea kinda harsh to ppl, then, maybe we can just ignore what I was talking about.

personally, i would rather not have any rules or policies. i think without such, it makes a place more friendly and let people express themselves. but as with any gathering of people, as the place grows, just like BF has for the past year, it is inevitable that some sort of measures needs to be in place so that the community won't go out of hand.

in some forum that i have been to, the rules are very strict. out of topic threads are locked immediately, posters who disobey the "rules" are put into "sin bins", etc. i don't think BF needs to have such strict rules as imho that's kinda strict and not very friendly.

it was very valuable to hear everybody's opinions. aside from the always useful comments from the regulars, a couple notables was comments from bunni on the new comer's perpective, and also from tonten's who has frequent the forum less due to repeated postings.

we should encourage users like bunni to stay and prevent future users from losing interests like tonten.

we can only strive to find a way to make sure that order is maintained and less people getting frustrated with the postings. so we can continue to discuss and learn about badminton, which is the goal here.

i don't know what solutions we will come up with yet, feel free to make any more suggestions.

In many ways, I agree with what kwun and has said and the idea behind what he is saying. I agree that there are sometimes posts that are senseless and don't have much substance behind them. But I also think that if you want to engage in this forum, you should have the right to say whatever it is you want to say. Not every person has the articulation to write comments that are thought provoking and substantial all the time. But I still believe in the right to say those things. It is up to the forum 'community' as a whole discourage postings that might be deemed senseless and useless, and we do that by not responding to those type of postings.

Ultimately, the moderators have the final authority to determine if postings cross the line of sensibility or fruitlessness and certainly should lock or delete any of these postings.

Also in regards to post counts and postings, I for one do not have a high post count, even though I've been using this site for about 1 year. I rather enjoy just reading the discourse between members and find that I learn from that. I usually offer opinions to topics that I truly feel strongly about, or have something substantial to say. So I hope others don't think that a person who have less 'quantity' in their postings, doesn't have 'quality' in their postings, or has any less skill or knowledge about this game which we are all enamored with. And I do know that as athletes, we are learning more and more about this sport every day, and I certainly couldn't improve at all without the benefit of this site. Thanks to all the members who make BF what is it.